


Apawlogies

by then00breturns1101



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Angst, Blood, Hugs, Meowrails, Moirails, don't worry it's platonic, there need to be more fics about nepeta tbh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-30
Updated: 2016-12-21
Packaged: 2018-08-12 02:19:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 4,877
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7916611
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/then00breturns1101/pseuds/then00breturns1101
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Moiralleigance is an interesting thing. In every canon example, it seems to be one-sided. And that's why it's toxic.<br/>So what happened to the best known moirails to make them so close?<br/>Was it always so?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Enough is Enough

**Author's Note:**

> First work on AO3! I thought this was an interesting concept, so I decided to try it. I'm not sure if it's going to get a good reaction. Who knows if you guys actually will find it angsty or whatever.  
> I just hope you enjoy!

           It was a quiet day in the cave. Even Pounce was out hunting. Or something. Probably sleeping. She could be so lazy sometimes. Not like she was the only one, Nepeta thought. Lazy, crazy, weird cat girl in a cave. So what if she lived in a cave, it wasn’t _her_ fault Pounce decided to get her out of her hive! Nepeta huffed. It was always _her._ After pouting over this for a while, she decided to check her Trollian for new messages. Aaaaand… nobody. Not a single troll on all of flipping Alternia wanted to talk. Typical. She frowned and turned off her tablet. Today was a really shitty day.

            Hours later, Pounce was still gone. However, she finally heard a familiar ding as her tablet announced a new message. Terezi! Maybe she wanted to roleplay? Nepeta sprang to it, eager to chat. But something stopped her. _Well, why should you answer her? It’s not like she answered_ you _when you trolled her three times this morning. Give her a taste of her own medicine._ Shocked, Nepeta paused to examine her thoughts. Why was she thinking this? Terezi was her friend, of course she wanted to talk to her!

            _Except this morning…_

_Or yesterday…..._

_Or the day bef-_

            Oh come on! This was ridiculous! She was probably busy, or something! Terezi was a very busy person. She was probably doing something very important!

            _For three days? Ridiculous._

            Nepeta frowned at the thought, picking up her tablet and opening up the window.

* * *

 

GC: H3Y

GC: WH4TS UP?

 

* * *

 

            As she typed in a response to her friend, she stopped. Why _should_ she answer? That would just be desperate. Someone not talking to her in three days and then they text her, and she pounces on it like a starved meowbeast?

            Terezi would just have to wait a little longer. Nepeta turned off her tablet. The second she did so, she pulled her hat off and bit it, growling in frustration. _Why was she doing this???_

            Just as she thought this, she got another message. Oh fantastic, it was Equius. Just who she needed to hear from right now. She wasn’t sure if that was meant to be sarcastic or not. It would vary, depending on the results.

 

* * *

 

CT: D--> Nepeta

AC: :33 < yeah

CT: D--> It has come to my attention that you have been deliberately ignoring my trolling attempts

CT: D--> I know you have read my messages

AC: :33 < maybe i have

CT: D--> You do know that it is considered very rude to ignore someone’s messages. I would expect this from the lowb100ds, but never of someone of your albeit low status

AC: :33 < why are you always going after them??

AC: :33 < maybe you should TALK to aradia, sollux, and tafuros! theyre nice if you get to know them instead of just being an ass!

CT: D--> Nepeta!

CT: D--> This is what I mean. Your interactions with the lowb100ds have 100sened your morals

CT: D--> You need to watch your language in order to meet e%pectations

AC: :33 < whose, yours?

CT: D--> Well, yes, but not only mine

CT: D--> Olive-b100ded trolls are e%pected to behave in a certain manner

CT: D--> You need to uphold this

AC: :33 < well i dont care!! i dont care about societys expectations fur me, and i especially dont care about yours!

CT: D--> Nepeta

CT: D--> As moirails, we need to listen to each other in order to keep a stable relationship

CT: D--> It is our duty

AC: :33 < are you serious?

AC: :33 < “D--> We need to listen to each other in order to keep a stable relationship”

AC: :33 < sure, because youre suuuuch a great listener

CT: D--> Yes

AC: :33 < no!!!

CT: D--> What

CT: D--> Is this habit of meaning the opposite thing you say another habit picked up from the lowb100ds

AC: :33 < maybe it is!

AC: :33 < and maybe youre not such a great listener!

AC: :33 < all you efur do is just boss me around!!

CT: D--> That is not all I do

AC: :33 < YES IT IS!!!

AC: :33 < “D--> Nepeta, watch your language. Nepeta, control your temper. Nepeta, stop interacting with the lowb100ds.”

AC: :33 < youre right, we are meowrails! im your pacifier, or whatefur!

AC: :33 < but im just a pacifier, arent i?

CT: D--> You are not just a pacifier

AC: :33 < well it sure s33ms like it

AC: :33 < whens the last time you listened to me?

AC: :33 < whens the last time you helped me? >:((

CT: D--> I help you become a better person

CT: D--> I am helping you right now

AC: :33 < i swear to god equius

AC: :33 < you are blinder than terezi

AC: :33 < you dont help me at all

AC: :33 < were meowrails, but im the only one doing anything!!

AC: :33 < i talk to you, calm you down, shoosh you, and im there fur you

AC: :33 < but when were you efur there fur me?

AC: :33 < remember when i was sad beclaws karcat was ignoring me?

AC: :33 < and i talked to you about it?

CT: D--> Yes

AC: :33 < you scolded me

AC: :33 < beclaws i was “D--> Having affections for a mutant many levels below you”

AC: :33 < i dont care if he is a mutant, i still like him!

AC: :33 < i was crying, equius!!

CT: D--> I was not aware of the fact that you were crying

AC: :33 < YES YOU WERE, I FUCKING SAID IT >:((

AC: :33 < and dont you hit me with the D--> Language, Nepeta

AC: :33 < like you always do

AC: :33 < im so sick of you bossing me around

AC: :33 < thinking that just beclaws were meowrails, you can get me to do whatefur you want

AC: :33 < and then just have me calm you down when youre upset

AC: :33 < even though you do NOTHING fur me

AC: :33 < what kind of meowrallegiance is that??

AC: :33 < why should i stay in this?

AC: :33 < im worth NOTHING to you

AC: :33 < just another lowb100d to boss around

AC: :33 < well since you seem to be so apathetic, i might as well just LEAVE!!!

 

* * *

 

Yelling, Nepeta threw her tablet at the ground, breaking it. Screaming into her hat, she put her knees to her chest and backed up against the cave wall. After about a minute, she stopped screaming and instead began sobbing.

            _Nobody cares…_

_Nobody wants you around…_

_Nobody would notice._

            Trying and failing to push these thoughts out of her mind, Nepeta continued crying. Her hat was a wet, snotty mess. So what. This hat was stupid, anyways. 

_So are you._

            She pushed out the thought that Equius had made it for her, and threw it on the ground.

            Wiping her face on her sleeve, Nepeta left the cave. She had had enough of that place.


	2. Realization

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Equius realizes  
> he fucked up

            _Fiddlesticks._

_You’ve done it this time._

            Equius sat in his hive, across from his husktop. Nepeta’s last message had been an angry one. He had never seen her this furious. Maybe she was waiting for him to answer?

* * *

 

CT: D--> Nepeta

CT: D--> I

CT: D--> From what you have told me, it does seem as if I have been doing a poor job as your moirail

CT: D--> Perhaps I was not in the right in my assumptions

* * *

 

            Oh come on, that was terrible. She’d see it as just another way to stay superior, and…

            And maybe she was right.

            Equius pushed back his chair to examine the situation, and could come to only one conclusion that wasn’t clouded by his own opinions.

            He was a horrible excuse for a friend, and especially a moirail. Nepeta was right. He didn’t listen to her, or help her, or do anything other than tell her what to do…

            But on the other hand, he _was_ doing it for her own good…

            But could she tell?

            He told her all the time that he bossed her around for her own good, but she never seemed to believe it. Perhaps because, in reality, it didn’t do her any good…

            Equius’ head went cold. Had he been hurting her this whole time? Had he just been a negative part of her life, and just a responsibility when he needed her?

            He was now sweating profusely. The realization had crushed him like his own hands had crushed so many of his robots.

            His own moirail hated him.

            He had been a horrible, horrible friend.

            Scooting up to his husktop, he rushed to try and rectify this.

* * *

 

CT: D--> Nepeta

CT: D--> Nepeta, I am...

CT: D--> I am profusely sorry

CT: D--> After thinking about this situation, I could only come to the same conc100sion you have

CT: D--> I have been a horrible friend

CT: D--> And a pathetic moirail

CT: D--> All along, I was convinced that I was doing this for your own good

CT: D--> But I never stopped to think if that was how you perceived it

CT: D--> To you, it seems I was just

CT: D--> Just treating you like one of my robots

CT: D--> Just commanding you to do things

CT: D--> And this was no way to treat you

CT: D--> Nepeta, I’m

CT: D--> I’m so sorry

* * *

 

            Equius sat back and waited for a response.

            He waited.

            And waited.

            Several minutes later, there was nothing.

            Was he giving her the silent treatment? Refusing to talk to him so he would feel hurt? He deserved it anyways, but…

            Something told him that wasn’t it.

            He felt it.

            Equius started sweating even more, soaking through his shirt. This was not right. Nepeta was terrible at the silent treatment; she had attempted it before, and she decided never to do it again.

            Something was wrong.

            Knocking over his chair, Equius sprinted out of his hive and to the forest where Nepeta lived. It wasn’t too far, and he had been there sweeps ago.


	3. A Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It looks like things might be looking up. Someone is. Someone else is looking down.
> 
> (recommend you listen to "all the pretty little horses" during this chapter)

Equius was running as fast as he could. He thought he recalled the path… yes, there was the mountain! He was almost there!

            Picking up the pace, he ran up the rocks and into the cave.

            “Nepeta!” he cried, catching his breath.

            “Nepeta? Nepeta, where are you?” his head spun as he tried to find her. On the ground, he saw her hat, as well as the shattered remains of her tablet. So that was why she wasn’t answering, but… where was she? Sweat ran down his face. He picked up the hat and stashed it in his pocket to give to her.

            Suddenly interrupting his thoughts, he heard loud, insistent meowing. Nepeta’s lusus!

            Equius jumped out of the cave, landing in front of the beast.

            “Meowbeast, you are Nepeta’s lusus, correct?” he asked. She meowed, seemingly nodding. She then started turning in circles, meowing at Equius. She wanted him to follow. Next thing he knew, she took off running through the trees, with Equius close at her heels.

 

* * *

 

            Nepeta sullenly walked through the woods. How many times had she walked this path? A lot, that was for sure. She mostly went for the view. Now, she didn’t even know why she was going. It had become a habit to go there when she was upset, and she had never felt this awful. She saw a dead tree to her left and knew she was almost there.

            Suddenly, the ground gave way to emptiness. She stepped forward, looking off the edge of the cliff. It really was an amazing view. But she knew it could get better. She walked along the edge, to her right, and came across a huge tree, growing near the edge of the cliff with its branches reaching out into the abyss. It was Her Tree.

            As she climbed, Nepeta began thinking. She had cooled off somewhat, and she felt much less angry than before. But now she just felt emptiness, sadness, and…. Regret. She sat on her perch, looking out. Miles and miles of trees stretched before her, turning turquoise as they went to the east. That was where Terezi’s hive was. Well, her treehouse. They were both some of the only ones who didn’t live in an actual hive, other than Kanaya. She had a cool tower in the desert. It would be nice to visit someday.

            Nepeta kept this train of thoughts, determined to keep them from falling. Again. She started singing quietly, a song that Aradia had shown her from her archaeology expeditions. She wasn’t sure what it meant, but it sounded nice.

_“Hush-a-bye, don’t you cry. Go to sleep, my little baby. When you wake, you shall have all the pretty little horses. Dapples and grays, pintos and bays, all the pretty little horses._

_Way down yonder, in the meadow, poor little baby crying ‘mama.’ The birds and the butterflies flutter ‘round his eyes. Poor little baby crying ‘mama.’_

_Hush-a-bye, don’t you cry. Go to sleep, my little baby. When you wake, you shall have all the pretty little horses. Dapples and grays, pintos and bays. All the pretty little horses…”_

            As Nepeta hummed the end of the song, she suddenly heard heavy footfalls. Someone was running, and right towards the cliff! She was about to warn them when she saw Pounce burst through the trees, followed closely by- Equius?? What was _he_ doing here? She turned away, looking back at the view.

            Pounce ran to the foot of the tree and started meowing, pacing in circles. Equius ran after her, stopping and panting once he got to the tree.

            “Nepeta?” he called out, looking into the tree. Then he saw her. “Nepeta! Nepeta, get down from there! You’re going to fall!”

            “And why would you care?” Nepeta muttered bitterly, “You can just get yourself another _pacifier_. One that’s more obedient than me.”

            Equius was stung by her words, looking hurt. Nepeta still wouldn’t look at him, but in a way, he understood that. He sighed and sat down against the tree’s trunk.

            “Nepeta, I… I am so, so sorry,” he began. “I am so sorry for… for how I have treated you all these sweeps, and how I had never stopped to listen to your side of the story. If…” he gulped, “if you have been feeling this way for our entire relationship, and I never realized that, then…” taking a deep breath, Equius continued.

            “Then I truly have been blinder than Pyrope, as you said. But not only that,” he looked down, holding his elbows. “I have been a horrible friend, and a pathetic excuse for your moirail.”

            Hearing this, Nepeta sat silently. She didn’t want to admit it, but she had begun crying. Was Equius really sorry? She wanted to believe him so badly, but… a part of her just couldn’t. She stayed in the tree, bringing her knees to her chest.

            Equius, noticing her silence, kept talking.

            “You were right, Nepeta. A good moiralliegance is two-sided, and both parties must benefit for it to be helpful. But you have not been benefiting at all,” he continued, having a hard time breathing, “in fact, I… I may have been hurting you. And going off of what you told me, it’s… not quite a ‘may.’ I _have_ been hurting you, and it is my greatest regret.”

            Equius felt liquid run down his face. Strangely enough, it didn’t seem to be sweat. Wiping his eyes and taking off his sunglasses, he kept talking. It was becoming increasingly difficult to do so.

            “I am… I am so regretful f-for what I’ve done, and I wish I had never hurt you the way I did. N-Nepeta, I’m sorry,” he sniffled, “and I understand if… if you can’t f-forgive me. You would b-be in the right. You… you have done nothing but help me, and… a-and… I’ve d-done nothing b-but hurt you.”

            It was no longer possible for Equius to continue speaking, unless he wanted to end up sobbing. He sat in silence, fighting off tears. And failing to do so.

            Nepeta stared at nothing, crying as well. Finally, her voice cracking, she spoke up.

            “Did you… did you really mean all that…?”

            Equius looked up suddenly. He stammered, wiping his eyes again.

            “O-of course I did!” he told her, “I would… I would never lie about something like this. Especially not to you.”

            “You… you really care…?” came Nepeta’s almost inaudible response.

            “Yes, Nepeta, I care. I care so much about you. You have helped me so much in my life, and taught me many things. I was trying to help, but I now see that I was hurting you instead. I want to help you the way you have done to me,” he finished, standing and looking up at the branch where she sat.

            Hearing this, Nepeta finally brought herself to look down at him. His tear-streaked face was undeniably genuine, and reflected hers. She smiled, wiping her face with her sleeve.

            “Now, could you please come down? I don’t want you to ‘foal,’” Equius quipped, using one of his signature horse puns. Nepeta burst out laughing, and quickly fired back.

            “Sure. But only beclaws of that pun you made, Equius,” she giggled as she began climbing down the tree.

            Equius smiled. He was going to make it right. He watched as Nepeta descended, more excitedly than he thought she would have.

            She put one foot on a branch that looked a little too pale.

            “Nepeta, wait, I don’t think that is-”

            The limb snapped.

            Her hand slipped.

            And Equius watched in horror as Nepeta went careening off the cliff.


	4. A Plan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the really late (and short) chapter! school is stressed and I have shitty time management skills, heh. hope you enjoy anyways!

            Equius stood in shock, with Pounce beside him.

            No. This couldn’t be happening, this… it wasn’t real! It couldn’t be real! There was no way that… that she…

            There was no way that Nepeta was dead…

            Finally, he could bring himself to move. She could still be alive, maybe. Nepeta was sturdy, she had broken her leg before and had been fine! She… she would survive! She had to!

            Equius took off running. He saw a place where the incline of the cliff became less steep and he could climb down. He didn’t even bother getting his glasses before beginning to race down the slope, Pounce following close behind.

            Scratches and bruises were all over his legs, but as soon as he was on flat ground again, Equius sprinted towards where Nepeta had fallen. He saw the tree above the cliff, and looked down. What he saw on the rocky ground in front of him almost made him fall over.

            In a pool of olive blood, limbs splayed and back bent awkwardly, her eyes half-lidded and glazed over, lay an unmoving Nepeta.

            Shaking, Equius ran up to her, kneeling down and feeling her wrist for a pulse. It was there, but it was faint. She was alive. He put one arm under her knees and one under her back to pick her up, but as he began to stand, he was stopped by a faint whimper.

            “N-Nepeta? Are you alright??” stuttered Equius. All that answered him was Nepeta’s eyes sliding shut and her face contorting in pain. He looked at her position and how… wrong it seemed. Suddenly, realization hit him like a punch to the gut- Nepeta’s spine was broken.

            Equius set her down as gently as possible. He couldn’t jostle her; her back had to be kept still. He looked around and saw some trees with sturdy looking branches. Walking over, he broke some off, then tore pieces of his shirt to tie them. He checked on Nepeta, finding her to be unconscious. It was probably better that way; this was going to hurt.

            Trying to be as gentle, but quick as possible, he shifted Nepeta so that her back was straight. She inhaled sharply, but that was the only reaction. Equius then tied the branches to her, keeping her spine in place. As gently as possible while keeping her stable, he started walking back to his own hive.

            It took a long time. Nepeta’s pulse became faint, as did her breathing. Equius was sweating a lot under the Alternian sun, which had recently risen. Finally, he could see his hive in the distance. He picked up the pace, though trying to keep her steady as possible.

            He arrived at the door and opened it, heading upstairs to his main robotics room. With his elbow, he shoved the bits and pieces of his previous project off of his worktable, then lay Nepeta down gently. She was in really bad shape… literally. Equius winced. How was he going to fix this? He’s not a doctor! He could just make her back worse, he- he could kill her!

            Sweat began pouring down his face. Fiddlesticks… what was he going to do? Who did he know that could heal? Perhaps Kanaya could help, but she lived far away, and didn’t have experience with broken spines… He knew of nobody that could help. All he had was his experience with robots… that would have to do.

            Equius took a deep breath. He had one chance to save her life.

            Using a particular robot as a guide, he began drawing rushed blueprints for his plan.


	5. Assistance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GUYS I AM SO SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING IN A MONTH  
> school is stressful and i'm a shitty procrastinator but i am BACK  
> and i promise to have the fic come to an end at least by the end of the month!

                Equius looked at the paper, mopping his brow with an already soaked towel.

It was something.

            It was definitely very far from perfect, but it would have to do. After all, he normally had weeks to work on these, but now he had hours.

            Nepeta’s condition was about stable. Her bleeding had lessened, but her breathing was shallow and irregular. She was still unconscious. Good. He didn’t have the heart to do this if she could feel it…

            But he had to do it fast. Equius set about gathering the pieces. Working as fast as he could, he began fashioning the thing that could save her. As an afterthought, he trolled Kanaya.

 

CT: D--> Maryam

CT: D--> Maryam I need a favor

GA: Yes Equius What Is It

CT: D--> Nepeta has been gravely injured

CT: D--> Her back is broken and I am attempting to use a robotic attachment to fi% it

CT: D--> But I think I may need your help for something e%tra I thought of

GA: Something Extra You Say

GA: I Am Not Skilled In The Field Of Robotics So If Its About That I Must Decline

CT: D--> I will take care of the robotics

CT: D--> I just need you to bring sewing supplies

CT: D--> And fuzzy cloth

CT: D--> And get here as fast as possible

            He turned away from his husktop and got to work again. The attachment was complete, and he just had to, well, attach it. He wiped the sweat off his hands and put on a pair of gloves, getting a few sharp knives that would have to serve as scalpels for now. Turning Nepeta onto her stomach so her back was facing him, he pulled her shirt up to expose the break.

            Bracing himself for what he had to do, he carefully cut into her skin with the makeshift scalpel.

 

            About midway through the procedure, Kanaya burst into the hive, carrying fuzzy blue cloth under one arm. She buzzed with questions, but seeing how deep Equius was in the work, she sat back and watched anxiously, offering advice and surveying Nepeta’s condition. So far, everything was going fine.

            She reminded herself not to jinx it, fidgeting with her hands. Her worry was growing with every minute… what if Nepeta did not make it? What if it went wrong?

            She looked up at Equius. His clothes were soaked with sweat and she wrinkled her nose a bit, and sighed.

            He would never forgive himself if it went wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> also i'm sorry for such a short chapter


	6. Resolution

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally!!! I am so sorry for the month-long wait!

            An hour passed. Equius finished the first part of the operation. By the end, he was dripping with sweat and it was actually starting to puddle on the floor. Kanaya thought it was, honestly, gross, but didn’t say anything. She was busy with her own project.

            While Equius was working feverishly on creating the attachment earlier that day, he realized that it would need a counterweight to stabilize her spine. As he was messing around with what weights would work, an idea struck him. He made the attachment much longer than would normally be needed, and asked Kanaya for the final touch. The cloth.

            She had been sewing a cover for the attachment, made of soft and furry blue cloth. As she had finished it early, she started creating something: a pair of paw-like shoes. Yes, this would be very nice to match. She had the feeling Nepeta would appreciate it.

 

* * *

 

 

After what may as well have been forever, Equius finally set down his tools and practically collapsed on his chair. The operation was finished, and had gone successfully. Well, as far as they could tell while Nepeta was still asleep. He alerted Kanaya, and she helped clean up all the blood and sweat. Then, she sewed the cover onto the new robotic tail that Equius had made. It was a risky operation, but it seemed to have worked. They lay her in a more comfortable position and waited anxiously. Equius was definitely the more scared of the two- it was unnerving.

He was fidgeting and glancing back at his unconscious friend every thirty seconds, having to wipe his brow more times than Kanaya to count. This, of course, put her on edge. If _Equius_ , of all people, was scared, then… the situation was dire.

“Equius?” she asked quietly, “What was Nepeta’s condition when… when you found her?”

He hesitated to respond.

“It was… bad. There was… a lot of blood, and I thought she was dead, at first. I…” his voice seemed to falter. “I didn’t want her to die before I could make amends…”

“Amends? What do you mean?”

Equius sighed. Well, it wasn’t like Kanaya wouldn’t pry it out of him anyway. She was a meddler. A caring one, but still.

“I… I have not been a good friend and moirail. In fact, I’ve been horrible- I didn’t even know she had been feeling this upset until she practically yelled at me about it,” he confessed guiltily. Kanaya waited a while before responding.

“She… this happened before you could apologize?”

“No, I apologized. Nepeta was in her tree, on the cliff. She was about to come down, but the branch broke. She fell all the way down.”

Kanaya winced. A weaker troll could’ve been killed by a fall that high! It was lucky that Nepeta was very resistant for her caste. Usually, you’d have to be a much higher blood color than that to be able to survive, but Nepeta was unusual. Not even only in that sense, she was strange in many other ways, but it was endearing. Karkat would yell about it, but Kanaya didn’t agree with his rambles often. He would probably feel guilty if he knew this had happened- he always did. It seemed like he didn’t care, but he did.

Kanaya would’ve continued this train of thought if she didn’t hear a noise from the couch where Nepeta was sleeping. She got up in a flash, but Equius was faster. He was by her side in an instant.

“Nepeta? Nepeta, are you awake?” he asked hurriedly.

Her eyes opened blearily and she looked at him.

“Equius…?” her voice was hoarse. “What… happened?”

“Oh thank goodness, you’re okay!” He was about to hug her, but stopped himself. He wasn’t sure if her back would still hurt her if he touched it. “How do you feel?”

“I… my back’s kind of sore, and…” she frowned, trying to recall exactly what happened. “The last thing I remember is falling off a cliff. Am I dead?”

Kanaya couldn’t help but chuckle at this. She hadn’t noticed, but her face was now stained with jade tears.

“No, you are not dead, thank goodness. Your back was broken, but-” she stopped herself, then looked at Equius, “well, why don’t you show her?”

He gently helped her off the couch. To his relief, she could stand properly.

“Look behind you,” he told her. She did, and she squealed with delight.

“I have a _tail_?!” she exclaimed. “Equius, did y- _oh my god it MOVES!!”_

She was swishing it around excitedly, hopping around with her eyes sparkling. Suddenly, she pounced onto Equius and wrapped her arms around him.

“Thank you! Thank you so much!” she suddenly noticed the figure that had been standing behind him. “Oh, Kanaya! Hi! I didn’t notice you!”

“Hello, Nepeta. I’m glad to see you’re well!” she stepped towards her, offering up a pair of blue paw-like shoes. “I made these, I hope they fit you.”

“Thank you!” she grinned, then tried them on. They fit perfectly, and were quite comfortable at that. She looked back at Equius, who now had something else in his hands. It was her hat.

“To… complete the ensemble?” he said sheepishly. Nepeta smiled gently, then put it on. She hugged Equius again.

“I’m sorry for what I did, Nepeta,” he whispered, hugging her back. “I’ll do whatever it takes to make it right.”

“Thanks, Equius,” she replied, leaning her head on his shoulder.

“I forgive you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, it's done. My first officially published fanfiction! Please tell me what you think, and any advice you have!


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